The next pattern I wanted to try with “One String to rule them all” is WaterFlow. While playing around, I discovered something that comes in very handy when shading with marker!

I used the stylefile marker and applied 3 layers. You can see that each layer adds more pigment.

Then I discovered the colorless blender 🙂 Voila – we have highlights!

Just like I did with the previous tile, I filled each section of the string with one layer of the marker. Then I tangled over this. A few swipes with the colorless blender added the highlights and finally, I added layer 2 and 3 to darken the shaded areas.

At the same time, I discovered that WaterFlow looks great when applied in the round.

Today I took the time to capture progress pictures of my “One String to rule them all“. My goal is to create my own pattern library where I can explore each pattern in depth. Drawing a pattern once or twice doesn’t give a pattern enough credit. Every single pattern has so many possibilities and I just love playing with patterns.

I want to create a mono-tangle (using just one single pattern on a tile) while exploring how this pattern will perform when tangled as a ribbon, a filler, and in the round. What is happening when it is tangled on black background?

Here is my very first version of the ‘String to rule them all“.

I used the outline of my pencil sharpener to get that nice round shape. It will be great to see how the pattern looks when drawn in the round. The drop shape will show me what I can do if I try to use the pattern as a filler. And finally, right across I drew a ribbon.

With a thick marker, I outlined the shapes….

… and used the nice fat brush tip from my Chameleon Alcohol Ink Pens to fill in the entire space in black. This was quickly done and the pen provides a nice black base where individual strokes cannot be seen. I like that – black tile with white spaces to tangle.

Since I cannot locate the box that contains my precious Copic markers, I purchased a few cheap alcohol based markers. They are called ‘stylefile marker‘ and come in 124 colors. And yes, they are only available in Europe at the moment. This post is not about comparing markers though. I am sure that most brands perform in a similar fashion. I filled the various shapes in different colors. To ensure that I can still add shading later on, I used the lightest colors I had. On the drop shape, you can see what happens when you add a second layer of exactly the same pen. This means the more layers, the darker the shade. No need to buy 5 different shades of the same color, if you can achieve the same result by simply adding layer after layer! One mistake I made though .. I should have erased the string lines. Once covered with marker, the pencil line cannot be removed.

Time to tangle! I pick Shattuck – a pattern that has so many different faces! It’s been the first pattern introduced in the Go-To Pattern Library. Shattuck in the round is fun. Just look what happens when everything ends in a single center point!

Next came the ribbon with curved Shattuck. Yeah, pretty boring – for now!

The drop shape .. well, I like that! Adding contrast with the stripes and by leaving a gap between the sections.

Now comes the fun part: Shading – I hate spending forever on shading. When I am done tangling, I want to move on to the next tile. Shading with a marker is a lot quicker and very effective! First I outlined all lines where they meet at a right angle. Then I applied a second and third layer of the very same marker I used for the background. Instant shading in the correct color!

Finally, I added a ribbon of Shattuck with a white Uni-ball Signo. To add some highlights, I smudged a bit of aquarelle white pencil and turned the empty round shape into a gem. And just to see how it would look, I added one stripe with the Derwent Graphik Line Painter. To me, that is still the best pen to use on black paper!

This string is pretty good for exploring a pattern, even though there is so much more that Shattuck is capable of!

While defining what kind of grids I will use in my book, I got completely hooked on the hex grid.

In this blog I will show you how I draw my hex grid and then expand this post to introduce a new pattern and the ‘extreme’ tangleation.The hex dot grid will be used extensively in future patterns that are going to be released by me.I call this Hex Flower – it makes sense to me to refer to the grid that I used, to identify the pattern. I do recommend that you draw each swirl individually. Otherwise you get confused after the 4th arm.
And here we have the extreme version! It looks even better on a warped grid!

If you are one of the lucky people that own the book Tangle It! Practice Book, then you know all about pattern morphing. The picture below shows you extreme pattern morphing!

I did not shade or color this yet. How many different patterns can you spot?

I was just playing around a bit and thought: “Why not write a step out for these pretty flowers?” Not everyone finds it easy to draw different kinds of flowers. So, maybe some of you find this helpful.

I also create a tangle it or color it page for this:

Right click on the image to download. I would love to see your colored or tangled version of it!